Homily - Epiphany of the Lord (Sunday homily 05 January 2025) Helping others to find Jesus

 

EPIPHANY OF THE LORD - Sunday Homily, Matthew 2:1-12, January 5 2025 

1) STORY

One day John’s family asked me to go to the hospital to anoint him as John was very sick.  He was in Room 1 on the first floor.  Several weeks later around 8PM, I received a call from the family asking me to visit John as he was in a critical condition.  I immediately went to the hospital looking for John in Room 1 on the first floor.  To my great surprise, he was not there.  The nurse told me via an intercom to try the tenth floor.  I went to Room 1 on the tenth floor to discover it was a baby’s ward.  I was now lost with no phone and no family contact number.  Then my “star” appeared in the form of a nurse.  The nurse in the baby’s ward was willing to help me.  She guessed he was in Block C and we were in Block A.  She asked for permission to go through Block B to get to Block C where I finally found John thanks to her kindness.  She was my “star” leading me to my goal.

 

2) GOSPEL: MATTHEW 2:1-12

i. THE MAGI: The Magi, wise men from the East, were looking for the newborn king of the Jews.  They needed help to find the new king. 

ii. THE STAR: “They saw his star and wanted to do him homage.”  The star led them to Bethlehem where they found the new born king of the Jews, Jesus.

 

3) APPLICATION TO LIFE

i) MODERN MAGI: There are many people searching for happiness, peace, a purpose in life and how to live a meaningful life.  Though they may not be aware of it, they are searching for God who alone can give them the desires of their heart. 

ii) MODERN STARS: People need help to find God just as the Magi needed help to find Jesus, and I needed the help of a nurse to find John.  God has sent us to be like stars leading people to Jesus.  We do this by our kindness towards others, by our willingness to help them, and the example of living a good life.  We have the power and responsibility to lead others to Jesus.

 

4) CONCLUSION

Just as I needed a star to help me find John and the Magi need the help of a star to find Jesus, so too, do those looking for peace, joy and happiness need help in their search for these precious gifts.  We are modern stars helping by leading them to Jesus who alone can give them peace, joy, and happiness.

Homily - C Sunday homily (29 December 2024) The Holy Family

 

C SUNDAY HOMILY, LUKE 2:41-52, DECEMBER 29, 2024

1. STORY

A famous American writer, Mark Twain, once said, “When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around.  When I got to be 21, I was surprised how much my father had learned in seven years.  By the time I reached 35, I had to admit that my Dad was one of the cleverest men I had known.”  His father did not change.  It was he who changed as he grew older and wiser.  It took him many years to see how intelligent his father was.

 

2. GOSPEL, LUKE 2:41-52

A. GOD WAS NUMBER ONE

God was number one in the Holy Family.  “Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover.”  It was a long and difficult trip through hilly country from their home in Nazareth to get to Jerusalem. 

B. JESUS OBEYED HIS PARENTS

Though he was God, Jesus obeyed his parents.  “He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them.”  Mary was a caring mother.  “His mother kept all these things in her heart.”

 

3. APPLICATION TO LIFE

A. MAKE GOD NUMBER ONE IN YOUR FAMILY 

i) If at all possible, put up a cross in your home and also hang a holy picture or two.

ii) Start your day with a short prayer asking God to bless and protect you and your family during the day.  End your day thanking God for caring for you and your family. 

iii) Regularly attend Sunday Mass and receive Holy Communion. 

B. WORK FOR FAMILY UNITY 

i) Respect every member of your family.  No one is perfect but all deserve your love.

ii) Forgive those who have offended you and ask for forgiveness if you have offended a family member. 

iii) Help out in doing housework.  Many hands make the work light.

 

4. CONCLUSION

It took the famous writer a very long time to realize how intelligent his father was and a long time to appreciate him.  The Holy Family made God number one in their life.  Jesus obeyed his parents, and Mary was a caring wife and loving mother.  We must help our family to make God number one in our life.  We must respect, love, and help each family member.  We thank Jesus for his instruction and ask him to help us to be caring, loving, forgiving, and helpful members of our family.  We pray that our family will follow the example of the Holy Family.

Homily - 4C Advent, Sunday homily (22 December 2024) Elizabeth praises Mary

 

4C ADVENT SUNDAY HOMILY, LUKE 1:39-45, December 22, 2024

1. STORY

Mary was an unhappy young woman mainly due to pressure at work.  To relax, she enjoyed running in the park.  One day, when she was very unhappy while running in the park, an elderly man whom she often saw walking there said to her, “You are very good, you are very fast.”  Though she knew that she was not very good or fast in running, the compliment, that word of praise, lifted up her spirits.  She felt a lot better and was determined to keep up this habit.  A word of praise is very important.

 

2. GOSPEL, LUKE 1:39-45

A. MARY VISITS ELIZABETH

Mary did three things when she visited her cousin, Elizabeth.

i) She showed concern for Elizabeth by making the long journey to see her.

ii) She brought joy to Elizabeth as “The infant in her womb leaped for joy.”

iii) Mary was a model of faith as “She believed what was spoken to her.” 

B. ELIZABETH PRAISES MARY

Elizabeth praised Mary three times.  “Blessed are you among women, blessed is the fruit of your womb, and blessed are you who believed.”

 

3. APPLICATION TO LIFE

A. WHO NEEDS TO BE PRAISED

There are many people who are unhappy, sad and hopeless and seeing no reason for living, they want to quit their journey.  These and many others can be helped by a word of praise. 

B. PRAISE GOD

God does not need our praise, but we need to praise God for his greatness, goodness, and kindness.  We praise God in our prayers such as in the prayer “Glory be to God.”  We praise God at each Mass we attend. 

C. PRAISE PEOPLE

We are all children of God.  We all have good points and we also have bad points.  We make an effort to see the good points in others.  We praise them by saying “good or very good.”  We say “congratulations or well done.”  We say “I appreciate your effort, or you have improved a great deal.”  Such actions on our part bring joy and happiness to others.  A little effort on our part brings hope and strength to others.  It is better to praise than to criticize.

 

4. CONCLUSION

The unhappy young woman was helped by the word of praise given to her by the elderly man.  Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth to show concern for her cousin.  Elizabeth praised Mary for being chosen to be God’s mother, for bearing Christ, and for her great faith.  We have the ability and responsibility to praise God our creator.  Though God does not need our praise, we need to praise God.  We have the opportunity and power to praise others.  Just saying “well done” makes people happy.  We thank Jesus for his instruction and ask him to help us praise God and people.  It is better to praise people than to criticize them.

Homily - 3C Advent, Sunday homily (15 December 2024) How to prepare for Christ's coming

 

3C ADVENT SUNDAY HOMILY, LUKE 3:10-18, DECEMBER 15, 2024 

1. STORY

Just before Christmas, Ann was in the hospital for an operation.  Her family visited her and gave her beautiful flowers and gifts.  Her friends sent her many lovely Christmas cards.  In the same room was another patient, Mary.  Ann noticed that Mary had no visitors, no gifts, no flowers, and no Christmas cards.  One of the nurses gave Mary a small Christmas tree.  Both got along very well.  Ann wanted to give Mary a gift but found all of her gifts too precious.  She was unwilling to part with any of them.  The day before Christmas as Mary was about to leave the hospital, she wished Ann a very happy Christmas and gave Ann her only gift, the small Christmas tree.  When Mary had left, Ann thought how wonderful Mary was as Mary had something that Ann did not have.  Mary had a generous heart.

 

2. GOSPEL, LUKE 3:10-18

A. WHAT SHOULD WE DO? When John the Baptist told of the coming of the Savior, the people asked him what should they do to prepare for this great event.

 

B. JOHN THE BAPTIST’S REPLY. 

i) The Baptist told the people that they must be GENEROUS. 

ii) He told the tax collectors that they must be HONEST.

iii) He told the soldiers that they must be RESPECTFUL.

 

3. APPLICATION TO LIFE

We must follow the Baptist’s advice as we prepare for the coming of Jesus at Christmas.

A. BE GENEROUS.  The Baptist tells the people that if they have two coats, they should give one away to someone who has no coat.  We have been blessed materially and spiritually.  Be generous by praying for a sick person, calling a lonely person, and helping the St. Vincent de Paul Society. 

B. BE HONEST.  The tax collectors were tempted to be greedy and cheated the people.  We are honest to God when we give him some of our time in daily prayer.  We are honest to people by realizing that they, though they are weak, are trying their best to be good.  We must be kind, forgiving, and patient. 

C. BE RESPECTFUL.  The soldiers were tempted to use their position to treat people in a disrespectful way.  We must be respectful to our parents, the elderly, and our teachers.  We treat people with respect by what we say and do, such as giving up a seat to the elderly on the bus.  We must be respectful to all as we are all children of God.

 

4. CONCLUSION

Ann was blessed with many material things but did not have a generous heart.  Mary had few material blessings but was blessed with something more important as she had a generous heart.  John the Baptist tells us how to prepare for the coming of Christ at Christmas by being generous, honest, and respectful.  We ask Jesus for his help to prepare well for his coming at Christmas.

Homily - 2C Advent, Sunday homily (08 December 2024) Prepare the way of the Lord

 

2C ADVENT SUNDAY HOMILY, LUKE 3:1-6, DECEMBER 8, 2024 

1. STORY

John, who knew no English, was on his way from Hong Kong to begin a new job as a cook in London.  At the airport he was told that the direct flight took about 12 hours.  After boarding the plane, he was amazed when the plane landed after an hour and a half.  He knew something was wrong.  To his great amazement, he was told that he was not in London but in Manila.  Unknowingly, he boarded the wrong plane.  He had to make a big change.  He then had to get off the plane, return to Hong Kong and on the next day, get on a plane to London.  To repent means to change.

 

2. GOSPEL LUKE 3:1-6

A. PREPARE THE WAY FOR THE LORD

In the gospel John tells us what we must do and how to do it.  First, what must we do?  We must “prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” 

B. REPENT FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS

Second, John tells us how we must prepare the way for the Lord.  We must repent for the forgiveness of sins.

 

3. APPLICATION TO LIFE

i) ADVENT, A TIME TO PREPARE FOR THE COMING OF JESUS

Jesus wishes to come to us in a special way at Christmas.  What makes this difficult for Jesus?  Sin in our lives makes this difficult.  Sins are like large rocks in a road which make it difficult to walk on the road or for a car to travel on the road.  The rocks in our heart may be anger, destructive criticism, hatred, pride, or selfishness.  This is what the Baptist means to make straight the paths. 

B. REPENT FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS

The Baptist tells us how to prepare for the coming of Jesus.  We must repent which means that we must make changes in our lives.  We must change anger into kindness, destructive criticism into praise, hatred into love, pride into humility, and selfishness into generosity.  To change we must rely on God’s help.

Here are three suggestions for you to do during Advent.

i) Make every effort to make a good confession.

ii) Put up a Christmas crib in your home to remind you and others that we are preparing for the celebration of the birthday of Jesus. 

iii) Invite a relative or a friend to Christmas Mass.

 

4. CONCLUSION

John got on the wrong plane.  He had to change and get on the right plane to get to London.  To repent means to change our bad habits into good habits.  The Baptist tells us what we must do.  We must prepare for the coming of Jesus.  The Baptist tells us how to do this.  He tells us we must repent by changing our bad habits into good habits.  During Advent make a good confession, put up a Christmas crib in your home, and invite a relative or a friend to Christmas Mass.  We thank Jesus for sending us John the Baptist.  We ask Jesus to help us make changes in our lives and to prepare well for Christmas.

Homily - 1C Advent, Sunday homily (01 December 2024) Be vigilant at all times

 

1C ADVENT, SUNDAY HOMILY, LUKE 21:25-28, 34-36 December 1, 2024

1. STORY

One lovely morning a bus was taking 60 children, ages four to six, on a picnic.  As the bus was approaching a railroad crossing, the bus driver saw that the railroad gate was open so he proceeded to cross the railroad tracks.  Just at that very moment, a high-speed train came passing by.  The result was 49 deaths and 18 injuries.  How did this terrible accident occur?  The railway signal operator was asleep.  He failed in his duty.  He failed to close the safety gate.  He was not vigilant.

 

2. GOSPEL, LUKE 21:25-28, 34-36

A. WE MUST BE VIGILANT AT ALL TIMES

There are two reasons to be vigilant. 

i) “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy by the anxieties of daily life”.  Many people are so busy that they must be reminded to be vigilant. 

ii) When Jesus comes at the end of time, “We must stand erect and raise our heads because our redemption is at hand.”  Jesus will come to judge us so we must be ready for this great event.

 

B. WE MUST PRAY

We must pray for two reasons.

i) We must have strength to resist the temptations that will attack us at the end of time. 

ii) We must be ready to stand before Jesus when he comes to judge us.

 

3. APPLICATION TO LIFE

A. PREPARING FOR CHRISTMAS

Advent is a time to prepare for the coming of Jesus.  One way to prepare for Christmas is to send Christmas cards, buy gifts for family and friends, put up a Christmas tree, go to eat delicious food, or even set out on a trip.  These are all good and enjoyable activities, but we must remember we are celebrating the birthday of Jesus.  We are not celebrating our birthday.  There is another way to celebrate this great feast.

B. PREPARING FOR THE COMING OF JESUS

Here are three suggestions to prepare for the coming of Jesus. 

i) Put up a CRIB in your home.  It will remind you that Jesus is the center of Christmas.  It will help members of your family better understand the meaning of Christmas. 

ii) Make an effort to make a good CONFESSION during Advent, thus preparing our hearts to welcome Jesus. 

iii) Invite a friend or family member to GO TO MASS with you during this Christmas season.

 

4. CONCLUSION

The railroad worker was not doing his job, he was not vigilant.  This caused a serious accident resulting in the death of many innocent children.  Jesus warns us to be vigilant so that we will be prepared for his coming at the end of time and at Christmas.  Advent is a time to prepare for the great feast of Christmas.  We can put up a crib in our homes, make a good confession during Advent, and invite a friend to go with you to Mass at Christmas.  We thank Jesus for his instruction and ask him for the strength to make good use of Advent.

Homily - 34B Sunday homily (24 November 2024) Christ the King (B)

 

SUNDAY HOMILY, JOHN 18:33-37, November 24, 2024

1. STORY

Once a great king decided to share all his wealth with his subjects.  He placed his treasures in front of his castle and placed his throne at the center.  He invited his subjects to choose whatever was there, reminding them to choose carefully.  A wise elderly woman asked the king if she could really choose anything.  He answered yes.  The woman then said she chose the king.  The king told her she had chosen wisely saying, “Because you chose me, all my kingdom will be yours as well.”  We chose Christ as our King.

 

2. GOSPEL, JOHN 18:33-37

A. ARE YOU A KING?

Pilate did not know if Jesus was a king.  Jesus had no crown, no castle, no army, and no royal clothes.  There are many who do not know that Christ is the King of kings. 

B. CHRIST IS A KING

Jesus is a King.  He is not king of a particular country but is king of the whole universe.  He is king of kings.  He came to save us.  He came to teach us the truth which is to teach us about God.

 

3. APPLICATION TO LIFE

A. JESUS IS OUR KING

i) Jesus LOVES us.  Jesus created us to live a happy life.  When we sinned, he did not abandon us but was merciful.  He came from heaven to save us by dying on the cross and rising from the dead.  He has prepared eternal life for us.

ii) Jesus CARES for us.  He provides us with a family, the Catholic Church, to care for us on our journey in life.  At Mass, through his word, he teaches us how to live a happy life.  He gives us the Eucharist as spiritual food for our journey.  When we sin, he forgives us when we go to confession.  We must be thankful for his love and care. 

B. WE MUST SERVE JESUS

i) We serve Jesus by our obedience.  Jesus has given us instructions on how to live.  He told us to love God, our neighbor, and ourselves.  By living in his way, we are serving Jesus.

ii) We serve Jesus by HELPING others.  We help others by praying for them, by being kind in our speech, by forgiving them if they have offended us, by patiently listening to their problems, by calling them if they are lonely, by visiting them if they are sick, by sharing some of our wealth if they are poor, and in so many ways.  God has blessed us, and we must share our blessings with others.

 

4. CONCLUSION

The wise elderly woman chose Jesus as her most precious treasure.  She chose the King of kings.  Pilate was not sure if Jesus was a king.  Jesus replied that he was a king but not of this world.  He is king of the whole universe.  He is the king of kings.  Jesus loves us and cares for us.  We are his servants, his disciples.  We must love Jesus and show this love by helping others.  We thank Jesus for his instruction.  We ask Jesus to make us his faithful servants, his dedicated disciples.